Out of the London Mist by Lyssa Medana: #Steampunk novel review

by Alison DeLuca

Lyssa Medana approached me to write an honest review of her book, Out of the London Mist, and I'm so glad she did. I'm always up for well-written and exciting steampunk.

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This is the story of an unwilling English noble, John, who ceded his rights to the family title to his brother Nicholas. But when Nicholas is murdered, John has to take up the title again while investigating the murder with his friend, Sylvia, and Nicholas's widow, Clara. 

As he tries to get the household back in order, John realizes that Nicholas had some dark secrets. Some of them involve Hammerhand, a fabled monster at large in London's Jewish community. 

For steampunk fans, there is plenty of aether technology and wondrous adventure. Sylvia is an elegant woman of action who wears steampunk armor of her own invention. It goes without saying that I'm Team Sylvia. 

I also like Clara, Nicholas's widow. She handles the revelation that her dead husband was not exactly faithful with aplomb. 

John is a great character as well, obviously too involved with aether and adventure to run the family estate - until he is forced into that role by circumstance. 

Lyssa Medana

Obviously, Medana has done her research. She brings 1905 London to life with its clothes, society, and conversation - including in the Jewish community.

Out of the London Mist is really pure adrenaline. The book centers around adventure with plenty of attacks and, yes, lots of mist. I would have liked to see more relationships evolving in London Mist, and the end left me wanting more. (Apparently, it is the start of a series.)

One caveat - I wanted to know far more about John's feelings for Sylvia. This seems like the perfect set-up for a very interesting relationship, but in London Mist the two seem to stay in a vacuum as far as emotions are concerned. 

There is a prequel available that describes how John and Sylvia met. You can find Deepest Desire available at Amazon (it's a free read for Kindle Unlimited subscribers and only 99 cents for everyone else).

Lyssa Medana has a very clear writing style that makes her a pleasure to read. I want to discover all of her books, not just the steampunk titles. 

If you like adventure and historical steampunk, Out of the London Mist is a very enjoyable read.

Buy Out of the London Mist at Amazon

Alison DeLuca is the author of several steampunk and urban fantasy books.  She was born in Arizona and has also lived in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Mexico, Ireland, and Spain.

Currently, she wrestles words and laundry in New Jersey.

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